FAO Director General assists in deworming a goat herd near the border with Ethiopia in Dollow, Somalia

21 February 2012 - Though the United Nations recently declared an end to the lethal famine in Somalia, FAO Director-General Jose Graziano da Silva recently underlined that without continuing assistance to people across the Horn of Africa -- in Kenya, Ethiopia and Djibouti – the number of deaths from hunger could rise again. In addition to crop seeds and planting tools, key FAO emergency support to the region included treating 2.6 million livestock against infections and diseases that were proliferating due to the drought conditions.

In the Horn of Africa, the rural poor depend heavily on herding for their income for food and other basic needs.